Mae Sot immigration chief transferred after inmate escape

Following the escape of 2 inmates, the immigration chief in Tak’s Mae Sot district has been transferred while an investigation takes place. The 2 Uighur inmates escaped by using soap to corrode the iron cell bars. They rubbed dish soap on the cell bars routinely. Over time, the iron started to rust and they were able to break the bars.

Mae Sot’s immigration chief Sangkhom Thadso will now work as an assistant at the bureau head office, a source told the Bangkok Post. Investigators from several different agencies have been looking for the fugitives with many searching along the nearby Myanmar border.

This is apparently the inmates’ second escape. 41 year old Murad Yeslikana and 29 year old Rasid Hussim were first incarcerated at the Nong Khai Immigration Police Prison near the Thai-Laos border on charges of entering Thailand illegally. They escaped earlier this year and were missing for 21 days. They were found on February 15 and transferred to the Mae Sot Immigration Prison.

Apparently, the inmates really thought through their latest escape. Police suspect the inmates planned for months and believe soap was rubbed on the bars everyday until the metal started to rust. Police say they suspect the inmates used a hard object to eventually break the rusted bars.

SOURCE: Bangkok Post